Leadership Insights
from the Untangle Doctor®
Blog Post Archive
- AIG 1
- Captain Sullenberger 1
- Hush Hush Tangle 1
- Introduction 1
- Jangle Tangle 1
- Lominger 1
- Marcia Ruben 1
- Meg Wheatley 1
- Strangling Tangle 2
- Tangle 1
- Twitter 1
- VUCA 17
- accountability 1
- adult development 1
- air cover 1
- ambiguity 1
- anger 1
- assessment 2
- backbiting 1
- blame 1
- brain based leadership 2
- cascade tangle 1
- catastrophize 1
- change management 1
- chaos 1
- coach qualifications 1
- collaboration 7
- commitment 2
- communication 4
- competence 3
- complexity 3
- conflict 1
- conflict resolution 1
- consultant qualifications 1
- corporate gridlock 1
- courage 4
- crisis 1
- crooked triangle 1
- culture 6
- decision making 2
- emotional contagion 1
- emotional intelligence 5
- emotions 4
- empathy 2
- empowerment 1
- ethics 4
- executive coach 3
- executive coaching 5
- executive leadership 11
- executive leadership coach 4
Active Listening Tips for Avoiding Strangling Tangles™
A Strangling Tangle™ paralyzes organizations and can lead to plummeting profits, lost revenue, and precipitous falls in market share. There are a number of causes for Strangling Tangles. Based on my experience and research, organizations with corporate cultures that discourage speaking up and sharing bad news are particularly vulnerable. Leaders play a huge role in building, maintaining, and changing corporate culture. One way leaders can change the culture is by learning and demonstrating active listening skills.
How Taking Accountability Eases Tangles: The Case of a Local Police Sergeant versus Bernard Madoff
Earlier this week, I received a call from a sergeant in our local police department. He didn't leave a specific message, although he said he was from the narcotics division and asked me to call him back. Last August 2008, I had parked my car in front of our home in a nice neighborhood in San Francisco. When I went outside, the whole front of my car was gone. The hood, bumpers, and half of my engine. Needless to say, I was angry and shocked. I eagerly called the sergeant back, thinking that they had caught the criminals who had destroyed my car.
More Leadership Wisdom From Captain Chesley Sullenberger
Captain Chesley Sullenberger III continues to teach us all the lessons of true leadership. Today's San Francisco Chronicle features a letter from Captain Sullenberger. He writes that he learned early on that anyone who takes a leadership role is responsible for the welfare of those he commands. He goes on to say, "During every minute of our flight, I was confident I could solve the next problem. My first officer, Jeff Skiles, and I did what airline pilots do: We followed our training and our philosophy of life. We valued every life on that airplane and knew it was our responsibility to try to save each one, in spite of the sudden and complete failure of our aircraft. "There is so much richness in this statement, and much applicability to our business leaders. As a leader, Sullenberger was confident because he had a roadmap and values that guided his decision-making process. He could have blamed his plane and given up. He did not.
US Airways Captain Sullenberger, Leaders, and Strangling Tangles
On January 15, 2009, US Airways flight 1549 took off from New York's La Guardia Airport. By all accounts, this was a routine takeoff, like many that occur day in and day out. However, on this particular flight, something unexpected occurred that required leadership, quick thinking, and skill. The plane hit a flock of birds, disabling both engines. Captain Chesley Sullenberger III deftly guided the plane for a safe landing in the Hudson. All the passengers survived. This miraculous story offers great insight for leaders who want to avoid catastrophes, or what I call Strangling Tangles. A Strangling Tangle is a complex business challenge, further complicated by messy human dynamics that leads to a precipitous drop in revenue or even business failure.